Arms upright, knees straight and squat … G. Muthu is instructing a mixed group. After a few stretches and warm-ups, he moves on to abdomen exercises and the crowd joins in.
A workout session was a part of the event put together by the Almond Board of California to popularise the goodness of almonds. “These simple workouts improve your blood circulation and keep you active. Club it with a healthy diet of almonds to enjoy good health,” says Muthu, a fitness trainer who runs a gym in Annur, near Coimbatore.
Sprinkle almonds on salads, use the nuts as dessert topping, consume it raw or soak it overnight and eat the next morning… have it any form, but ensure that it is part of your daily diet, advises Sheela Krishnaswamy, a nutritionist and wellness consultant based out of Bangalore.
“For many generations, we have been eating almonds because we know it is good for health. We use it in sweets in the form of badam kheer, halwa and burfi. Nutritionally it is rich, as it has proteins, fibre and is loaded with vitamin E, which works an anti-oxidant. It also has magnesium, which is essential for your nerves, muscles and bones, and potassium that balances the electrolytes in your body. It is naturally low on sugars and sodium which is a big advantage.”
She backed this with examples of studies done by the Almond Board of California over the last two decades on how almonds can be used effectively in weight management, to control diabetes and heart diseases. “It has been proven that including almonds to a normal diet or a calorie-restricted diet helps in effective weight loss and maintain weight too. It helps lower LDL or bad cholesterol and the total cholesterol level in the body,” she explained.
Sudarshan Mazumdar, Regional Director-India from the Almond Board of California, mentioned how almonds fit in beautifully as a healthy alternative to deep-fried snacks. “It is lifestyle diseases that pose a big threat now. Almonds pay a positive role in keeping these diseases in check. We are working on spreading the information on specific health benefits of almonds in controlling weight loss and a host of lifestyle diseases.”
